Grenadier Elite
The Grenadier Elite was a higher rank of the standard Grenadier and can take and deal more damage. Like the Grenadier, they are always equipped with a Gnasher Shotgun, Bolo Grenades and a Boltok Pistol. They wear studded shoulder armor and a chest strap, and appear to be much more seasoned combat operatives; as evidenced by their constant flanking attempts on higher difficulties. Their barbaric armor suggests that they are rather brutal fighters, and up-close they prefer to go for a one-shot-kill with the Gnasher Shotgun. Grenadier Elites are very skilled with Bolo Grenades, so just because you're in cover doesn't necessarily mean you're safe. In battle, they act almost leader-like and rush in to kill any COG Gear with their shotgun and then run off to the next foe. Grenadier Elites are therefore considered quite deadly, so proceed with caution. History Locust War Evacuation of Ilima When the COG tried to evacuate Ilima city to prevent it from being taken over by the Kryllstorm, General RAAM led a personal attack on the city so the Kryll could devour the city's human population before too many of them escaped. Many Locust Drones, including Grenadier Elites, helped assist the General carry out his attacks given out by Queen Myrrah. They appeared at an E-Hole created by a Corpser to attack the evacuation outpost of Zeta-Six. They flanked them from both left and right sides of their perimeter through smaller E-Holes but were killed by Michael Barrick who used a Chain Gun to deal with them. Grenadiers later emerged from an E-Hole while Zeta-Six was trying to enter Ilima Savings and Trust. They ambushed the humans several times as they advanced through the building. Later on, they appeared at Ilima High School, where they emerged along with several Theron Sentinels at the locker rooms and attacked Zeta while they searched for survivors. More Grenadiers tried to prevent Zeta from reaching the Seeder's location. Grenadiers took control of Ilima City Hall and protected the building when Zeta-Six tried to reach the Hammer of Dawn outpost. The "Croc Faces" would later ambush Zeta-Six several times as they tried to reach Dr. Gregory Wisen's Orphanage. They would later try to complete their mission by storming the orphanage from all angles and also helped General RAAM himself in his final battle against Zeta-Six. RAAM survived but Zeta was able to evacuate the civilians inside the orphanage. Lightmass Offensive Many Grenadier Elites took guard positions in and around the House of Sovereigns, first ambushing Delta Squad while they searched for Alpha Squad. Grenadiers would attack both Alpha and Delta as they tried to leave Ephyra, and guard the House from any intruder they found. More Grenadier Elites would try to stop Delta One from reaching Franklin's Outpost. They guarded the paths to every checkpoint between Franklin's Outpost and Chaps Gas Station and some of them were devoured by the incoming horde of Kryll. Countless Grenadiers would later lay siege to Franklin's Outpost until Delta arrived and cleared the place of every Locust they found. They tried to stop Delta Squad from reaching the pumping station at the Outer Hollow. Grenadiers attacked Delta Squad as they landed near East Barricade Academy at a courtyard and would ambush the Gears several times on their way to Fenix Estate guarding Theron Commanders and Seeders along the way. They would help the Theron Sentinel in his ambushes around the Academy, with several of them falling at the hands of the Gears. Elites also assisted a squad of Theron Guards near the Fenix Estate. Grenadier Elites guarded the entrance to Fenix Estate. More Grenadiers tunneled inside the house and ambushed the Gears a few more times. Many Grenadiers ambushed Delta Squad in East Timgad on their way towards Timgad Station and attempted to stop them from reaching Timgad Central Energy. Hundreds of Grenadier Elites were killed by the incoming blast of the Lightmass Bomb. Operation: Hollow Storm Grenadier Elites appeared inside the Hollow and protected it from COG forces when they launched a large assault inside Locust territory and engaged Delta Squad all throughout the Hollow. They were later tasked to kill any Stranded that remained alive after the sinking of Ilima, along with Kantus monks and Drones. More Grenadier Elites stormed the New Hope Research Facility to try to prevent Delta Squad from leaving the facility, along with other Locust (one was killed by the incoming Razorhail). Grenadiers assisted several Gunboats while trying to attack Dominic Santiago and Marcus Fenix who were trying to find a way towards the Locust capital, Nexus. As the Gears moved on, several Grenadier Elites made a last stand against both Human and Lambent forces inside the Palace, aiding Palace Guards and Kantus in the defense of their queen. However, many Grenadier Elites and standard Grenadiers turned Lambent and attacked Nexus. Delta-One was caught in a firefight with them and Augustus Cole killed one with his Gnasher Shotgun. The Imulsion then returned to the main group. Grenadier Elites would later take part in the Siege of Jacinto and fought Delta a few more times but were eventually killed. Lambent Pandemic After the flooding of Jacinto, many Grenadier Elites returned to their feral states and became the Savage Grenadier Elites, the few that remained aligned with the Queen would disappear for the next 18 months, replacing normal Grenadiers due to being more effective in combat. They were re-encountered at the Endeavour Naval Shipyard guarding several items Delta needed to fix the CNV Adamant. Though appearing in large numbers, they were not able to stop the Gears from leaving. They later guarded Azura and Adam Fenix from the Gears and their reinforcements. It is presumed that all Grenadiers, as with all Drone variants, perished when the Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon was activated. Behind the scenes Multiplayer *They are available as multiplayer characters in Gears of War, Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3. *Grenadiers were originally supposed to be playable in Beast Mode, but were removed for unknown reasons, most likely because the other playable Drone variants are savage, and the savage Grenadier Elite was an exclusive character. *In Gears of War 4 multiplayer, the Grenadier Elite is only available by crafting scrap. There was also a chance of receiving him early in the Weapon Collector 2 and Zombie Carmines Gear Packs. Horde 2.0 Grenadier Elites make an appearance in Horde 2.0 in Gears of War 3. They begin to spawn around wave 6. On Casual, they are still quite formidable opponents, using their Boltok Pistol and Bolo Grenades at medium-long range and switching to the Gnasher Shotgun as they close in. They appear along with Grinders and other Boomer variants. They should probably be taken out first on higher difficulties. A solid strategy is to go into cover while they shoot at you, then crouch down beside their cover. While they're reloading, pop out and shoot them point-blank with the Gnasher Shotgun. This will take them out in a maximum of three shots while saving your Lancer ammo, as you can waste as much as half a magazine on them on higher difficulties. Also meatshielding Grenadier Elites makes you grab their frag grenades providing you don't have a grenade already. Doing it to a normal Grenadier won't, yet killing a normal Grenadier normally makes them drop them; this is also the case with Flame Grenadiers. Category:Lambent Locust Category:Locust Soldier